Meet Alex Sheriff

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex Sheriff.

Alex, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I got started in the same way that I assume most everyone got started, which is by just starting. It’s rare to meet someone who has never once started making some sort of art thing. I mean, they even make you do it in school. I find it a bit funny too when artist bios start like “I’ve been drawing since I was old enough to hold a pencil.” Obviously you were, and so was I. Pretty much everyone was at the very beginning, I think. A big chunk of people seem to stop at some point, but I do think that everyone starts in some degree. “Artists” are maybe more stubborn, or weird, or determined, or addicted, or fortunate, or whatever enough to not stop? I don’t know.

I guess what’s more interesting than that is that my start, for whatever reason, consisted of drawings of dinosaurs and dramatic scenes from the prehistoric world. Its highly probable that the release of Jurassic Park fueled this heavily, but I think I even have a couple of pre-’93 works dealing heavily with dinosaurs. After about 65 million years of art school, this root interest has branched off (evolved, if you will, sorry, I won’t do that again) in a whole variety of directions. These interests or themes range from: dealing with our human relationship to the natural world, the fluid history of our species, evolution, extinction, deep past and the future, etc. Applying these themes to our world today through painting, drawing, sculpture and video is generally how I make my work.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I guess that there have been periods or instances of self-doubt or imposter syndrome, but what creative person – or maybe just, person – hasn’t experienced that? I’m not really trying to complain. It’s pretty nice to be an artist. Actually, it’s pretty nice to be doing the thing you want to be doing.

What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was very much fascinated by the prehistoric world – and then the natural world. I just drew a lot in general. If it wasn’t dinosaurs, it was jungles, or sharks hunting in the oceans, or an undiscovered tribe of people on an island; any sort of fantasy of the natural world. That’s a bit funny to me because I was completely an indoor kid. I grew up in Toronto, where winter is real. I think a fair portion of people would prefer to stay in watching movies or doing something cozy during those months.

I, however, often preferred to continue this into the summer months as well, when the weather is just as nice as it is here. In a way, I’m still kind of an indoor person who is fascinated by the outdoors. I do go outside sometimes, for the record, you know, for like research or whatever. Anyways, drawing was a perfect activity for an introverted kid who liked the great indoors, and it fit nicely. I also had a near-endless supply of ice cream and video games – true story, but for another time, maybe.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.alexsheriff.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @alexsheriff1

Image Credit:
Alex Sheriff

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